Day 94

Day 94:

Isn't dust interesting? 

Now hold on! I know what you are thinking. "Wow, this guy has covered some really weird and boring topics, but this? This is dumb." However, dust is something that is impossible to ignore, no matter how hard you try.

When there is a bright light shining into a room, so sometimes get to see something really cool. Thousands of these tiny particles are floating around, moving in and out of the beam of light. By reflecting the beam of light, these particles become visible to us, and even though they are only dust, it can seem quite beautiful. With little air flow, they hover gently, staying in place to slowly dance, to take their moment in the light. When there is air flow, their movement becomes fast and frenzied, zipping from one side of the room to another at speeds we cannot track. You can even pull out a vacuum cleaner, hold it up towards the beam of light, and turn it on! WWOOOOOOOSSSSSSHHH, the dust twirls and swirls and gets sucked into the vacuum cleaner, following their friends into the great dust box, their final home. 

These beams of light are most often seen in films with a director who really likes using cinematic shots. However, when we do see them in our homes, they usually are only fleeting. When the sun moves on, the dust dances and twirls one more time, then fades away. 

But the dust is still there. It's always there. You just can't see it. Even if you use the vacuum cleaner, it won't be able to capture all of the dust; they are too fast, too sneaky. Not all of them want to end up in the great dust bin. Many want to be endlessly free, and some want to settle down, amongst your things. Even if you take every precaution possible, and clean very frequently, it is almost impossible to maintain an environment that is entirely dust-free. It is everywhere, it is almost part of the air. Granted, some rooms will contain more dust than others, and these beams of light actually provide an interesting testing ground for this. The more dust you see in the beam of light, the dustier the room generally is.

While you shouldn't actively seek dust out, it's not harmful to breathe in the 'normal' amount of dust (if such a thing exists). Our lungs are actually designed to deal with dust quite well, it's constantly around us, after all. However, if you spend the day clearing out your loft, for example, you may find breathing slightly harder, or you might start coughing. This is why I always recommend wearing a mask whist doing this. 

Ok well I haven't always said that, I've never said it, I've never spoken about it before, and I imagine that not a great deal of people have, BUT I HAVE NOW! These get stranger every day, don't they? I wonder if this is a sign of me running out of material? I suppose that that is impossible; material and inspiration are all around us, every day. Like dust. Although you tend to find less dust and more inspiration outside than you do inside, and vice versa. 

*Laughs* Maybe I should go outside and stop clearing my loft...

IS THAT A METAPHOR? DOES THAT HAVE A SECONDARY MEANING? I DON'T EVEN KNOW ANYMORE, AND WHY DO I USE CAPS LOCK MORE NOW?! I wonder if these are still interesting? Is dust weird and boring, or is there something more to it? Am I just, floating and dancing around, without any meaning or purpose? 

Unplanned, I land in a space, at a desk or in a book. I sit there and play and ponder, until I am sucked away by some other force. The great dust-bin of creatives, which gets turned on and sucks in a huge number of them each time. Most of the time, creative work is invisible. There is so much of it, constantly floating all around us. Even if we try to stop it, it gets into our machines and our minds, and can always touch us, even at moments when we least expect it. But sometimes, in the right conditions, a beam of light can shine through into our space, and we have a fleeting moment to float around, visible to all who want to see. It can be truly beautiful, and one of the most interesting things in the world. And then, just as quickly as it was illuminated, the ideas and works fade away with the light. But they are still there, always.

Wow, there was something in that. I guess that the next time I sneeze, it's because I'll have a bit of an idea up my nose.

*Smiles and giggles*